Morning came too quickly for Natsu. It was a rough night, though it was far from the worst nightmare he had suffered through; just the final moments of those who had died over the years. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and carefully extracted himself from the two women that had been cuddled up to his sides.

A quick shower removed the last vestiges of tiredness and he left a note on the bedside table to tell the women where he had wandered off to. Natsu got dressed as quietly as he could and fastened his weapons to his person. With a final glance back at the bed, he slipped out the door and headed straight for the exit. Natsu gazed up at the dark murky skies, the sun was still yet to rise which left a bitter cold hanging in the lamplit streets.

"I hope Anna has some warmer clothes…" He murmured, thick fog slipping out from his mouth. "I'm sure she thought of it when looking at all the clothing stores…"

It was colder than it had been the previous day, even with the substantial wind-chill. While the cold wouldn't affect himself or Natsumi, Lelyanna was the only person in their little group who was susceptible to the weather. And even though he thought of himself as a shell of the man he once was, he still cared about the young priestess enough to want her to be safe and healthy. The same could be said with Natsumi, even though they had known each other for a shorter time. She was just a hardier woman when compared to someone normal like Lelyanna.

Since it was early morning, the roads weren't overly busy. There were some trucks trundling along the road to the airport, but foot traffic was minimal. It shocked him just how slow and cumbersome vehicles in this word were, a far cry from the speedy and sophisticated cars and bikes in his home world. Most vehicles here seemed to struggle getting up to speed and fell far short of the top speeds that even Lucy's SUV could obtain. There were a few vehicles that could go somewhat fast but those were mainly show pieces or race cars and the common man wouldn't be able to afford one of them in their lifetime unless they somehow built it themselves. It was part of the reason he wanted to bring his motorcycle, Nightingale, over. It was something that could offer him a taste of the constant adrenaline rush he got used to, due the stresses of war, of life and death battles and sneaking around behind enemy lines. And that little taste of adrenaline that he had gotten when he raced down the highway with Lelyanna clinging to his back brought back the addiction in full force.

Natsu made his way through the frozen city, his eyes drifting from one building to the next until he reached the bakery a little up the street from the Inn they had been staying at. He could sense three people inside, going about their morning routine of making dough and baking bread. One person came to a stop and he could feel a spike of curiosity come over her before the woman came to the door and opened it to reveal a stunningly beautiful woman with long dark-purple hair, iridescent purple eyes, and with ears that had small pointed tips at the top.

"Ah…" The woman blushed softly and quickly ushered the man inside. "I wasn't expecting you to be here this early, Mr Natsu."

"Iris?"

"Yeah. I felt you standing outside." The succubus gave the man a gentle smile and glanced at the closed door. "You came alone?"

"I had a rough night, nothing usual for me. But I didn't want to wake up my companions, so I left a note and came over."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Iris' back-length hair swayed gently behind her as she led the man further into the building and into the kitchen where they were met by two women who were nearly identical to Iris. "These are my sisters; the one with the long pixie cut is my younger sister, Cynthia, and the one with hair down to her backside is Anabelle."

Natsu noticed that instead of dressing to human standards, these three women were wearing short skirts and a halter-neck top with each one donning a white apron. It was a little nostalgic for him, since he was used to seeing women dressing like this in his own world, instead of the long skirts and loose clothes most regular women wore here. He also picked up on the same alluring scent that Iris had when she met him in the inn, but that scent was stronger here as it came from all three women. It gave him a lustful itch but he pushed it from his mind. "I can see why men find succubus attractive. I'm guessing this is just a difference in culture between humans and Succubi?"

"Hm?" Iris turned to the man once more with a curious expression but after she glanced down at her body, she understood what he meant. "Oh, yeah, our kind tends to prefer more revealing and shorter clothing than what they like. Though, I have noticed some human Jaegers wearing styles of clothing not usually worn by their people."

"They?" Cynthina asked. Her eyes roamed the man as he removed his coat and hung it over the back of a nearby wooden chair. "Oh, is this the Fire Demon Jaeger you were talking about?"

"Well, he's technically a hybrid, but you told us last night that he said humans robbed him of his humanity. So, I guess he could be called that." Anabelle replied. She had also stopped her work to appraise the man.

"As you noticed, Jaegers themselves have a more unique style of dressing, as you would've seen yesterday when you spotted us, Iris." Natsu slipped his hands into his pockets and looked at each woman. "Social norms aren't exactly our biggest concern. We wear whatever we feel most comfortable to fight in, for one reason or another. Anyway, how did things go?"

"We've already packed." Iris informed the man as she went back to baking. "Just let us handle our job for this morning before the bakery's owners arrive and then we can leave."

"Do they know that you three aren't human?"

"No, we've been using magic to fool them." Cynthia answered for her sister, who had to focus on measuring some flour. "Iris came to you as a blonde, right?" At the man's nod, the woman continued. "That's basically how we've handled it. Though, when we wanted to get laid, we'd use other disguises."

Natsu's gaze shifted across all three women and he tilted his head, eyeing them curiously. "Forgive my ignorance, but don't succubi and incubi usually have wings and a tail?"

"I suppose you wouldn't know, since you're a hybrid… You probably grew up with humans and not demons?"

"Yeah. But technically, I'm an Etherious. I was resurrected as a demon when I was very young, it's a very long story."

At Natsu's reply, the oldest sister placed her tin of bread dough into the oven and approached him with a slightly bashful expression. A purple tail slipped out from under her skirt and it waved its heart-shaped tip at Natsu. Anabelle turned her back to the man and her wings slipped through the skin of her back, extending out just beyond the span of her arms. "You see, we have the ability to hide these specific features. Common thought is that it's an evolutionary mutation that happened hundreds of years ago to allow us to better mingle with the other races. Although the records are long since gone, the elders theorised that we performed a ritual that caused these parts of our bodies to be imbued with transformation magic. It allows us to retain full functionality of our wings and tails while allowing us to hide them away as naturally as breathing."

Natsu reached out his right hand and gently tapped the tip of the heart, causing a visible shiver to run from tip to base. "Sorry if that was a little inappropriate."

"Come now, we're succubi." Anabelle giggled softly as her long tail curled around the man's thick arm and tightened slightly. She was gauging his strength by its firmness. "According to humans; we love inappropriate things. And while that is certainly correct, it's not the only thing we enjoy."

"Bella, stop feeling him up." Iris whined softly. She wiped her hands on her apron and grasped her older sister's arm, dragging her back to work. "We need to finish this before Sapphire arrives."

"Is she your boss?" Natsu asked. He pulled out the chair that he had placed his coat on and took a seat while he watched Anabelle dispel her wings and tail into her body, leaving not a single mark behind on her back.

"Yes, she and her husband hired us while they had their first child." Iris replied. "They should be at the point that they can return to work properly. She usually only runs the counter these days but before she became pregnant, they both baked."

"Well, since they don't know what you three really are, what are you planning on telling them when you have to leave?"

"We were discussing this during the night while packing. We decided that it's better that they don't know what we are, so we'll just tell them that a family member has fallen sick in Magnolia and that we're moving over there to look after them." Iris looked up from her work and glanced between her younger sister and Natsu. "Cyn, once you've finished there, can you take Mr Natsu up to our luggage and have him deal with it. Oh, and please leave the ones that we've set off to the side as we'll be taking those ourselves to make it seem a little more credible."

"Seems like you three have agreed with my plan?"

"I liked your little business idea." Iris flashed the man a warm smile, but due to her nature as a succubus and her sheer beauty, it came out as very alluring. "These two jumped on board as soon as I explained it too."

"It suits us better than baking." Anabelle added and the youngest sister nodded her head enthusiastically.

"Yeah, and it sounds very fun. Safe too. We should be able to be ourselves without worrying about it, from what we've heard from others in Magnolia." Cynthia wrapped her hand around the upper part of the man's left arm and gently pulled him up from his seat and over to the nearby stairs. "We'll be back soon!"

"Try not to 'devour' him, Cyn." Anabelle called out, giggling and smiling playfully at the fractionally younger woman.

"You three seem rather calm around someone like me." Natsu murmured to the young succubus as he allowed himself to be pulled by the arm up to the second floor and into the living space.

"Hm?" Cynthia looked back at the man for a moment then turned back to look ahead of her when she stumbled on a rug. "Oops… Oh, well, I guess we don't really feel anything threatening from you. Yeah, I can tell that you're powerful, even though you aren't outwardly showing it, but you seem sincere in your offer to help us. I don't doubt that you could kill all three of us before we even knew it happened. It's just that you don't feel like someone who would do that on a whim."

"I spent years, killing and killing and killing for my country. Trying to protect it from an invading force. I've done things I'm not proud of, but I justified them as 'for the greater good'. There are no winners in war… I'm the sole survivor of it, I couldn't even protect my wife and friends." Natsu sighed and ran his right hand through his hair as he lowered his gaze to the woman tugging on his left arm. "I have no issues with killing anyone, but I need a reason to. None of you girls had done any harm to anyone. You've committed no crimes in my eyes, so I won't punish you for it. Were you something like a goblin, I'd have killed you on sight."

Cynthia shivered at the mention of that obscenely evil creature, her eyes widening in fear. "I understand that sentiment. The only good goblin, is a dead one. They're a menace to even us Succubi."

"I don't consider you girls monsters, no matter what humans may think. I'm more of a monster than you three."

"I don't think you're a monster, Mr Natsu…" Cynthia consoled the man, her voice soft and soothing. She released his arm and placed a hand on his cheek as she stood on her toes, gently placing a kiss on the other cheek. "You might have done things that you consider monstrous, but the man I'm looking at is not one I'd call a monster."

Natsu sighed softly, looking away from the woman's large purple eyes and to a collection of cardboard boxes. He didn't have the heart to tell her what he was really like; of the monster that had roamed the battlefields and mercilessly slaughtered those who had wounded and killed his friends and family. He needed to change the subject, and those boxes were the perfect escape goat. "Are those your belongings?"

"Yeah." Cynthia nodded quickly. "Could you take care of those, but please leave those travel bags off to the left of them. Actually… I'll get you to help me bring them down."

Natsu brought his hand over the boxes and sent out a small pulse of magic, claiming the boxes as his own so he could send them away with Requip. Once they were gone, he picked up two of the bags and waited for Cynthia to grab the last one. The succubus led the way back down to the kitchen and showed him where to sit the bags.

"I better get back to work so we can finish quickly. It might be best if you head out now, before Sapphire turns up."

"Alright. I'll be waiting at the Inn; we'll head to the airport right after you three turn up."

"Thank you again, for doing this when you could have just left us here."

Natsu looked over at Iris and offered her a small smile. Though, he couldn't just say that all it amounted to was just give and take. He rescues them from danger, and they owe him and will work in a business of his design. There was no more to it than that. "Good luck with the owners."

With nothing more to say to the sisters, he grabbed his coat and left the bakery. The smile melted from his face like it was made from wax and he returned to his usual neutral expression. The job was almost over, he just needed to book their flight and return to Magnolia, then give his report to the Association. If only the first job could've been this simple. He turned on the balls of his feet and began to head to the Inn with his hands in his pockets.

Even though cold weather couldn't affect him, it seemed to dredge up memories of the life he wanted to leave buried. Pristine white snow tainted with the pink, red, and brown hues of blood, blackened with ash and muck. The faint booms of artillery fire echoed faintly in his ears. Screams of pain and suffering, of anger and despair, and the whimpers of those soon to breathe their final breaths. Lights flittered around his vision as he kept his eyes to the footpath ahead of him; flashes of gunfire in the night, their faint cracks shooting past his ears.

Strangely, he felt cold to the core. A tingle rippled across his body followed by numbness. Why was he here, why did he continue to fight when there was only him left. Out of the billions of people who lived in his world, it was only him left. He passed through a small crowd of people on their way to work, their voices mere mumbles fading away into the howling winds of that wasteland, just another group of ghostly whispers.

All he knew, all that he was, was death and destruction. He had lost what anchored him to his human side, the woman he loved so dearly, the friends he cherished, all of it gone in nuclear fire or at the hands of the enemy or rioting civilians. Happy's bruised, bloodied, and disfigured corpse flashed before his eyes; held tight in his arms with swaths of bodies all around them, all eviscerated by a monster borne of the horrors of war. They killed his adoptive son because he was different, just like they killed those of his kind.

Due to his resilient body, he had been experimented on, given drugs designed to change someone's body and hone it into a weapon of war. Just like the guns and grenades he wields, he himself was a weapon to be unleased upon the enemy. Thanks to the chemicals injected into his body, he was unmatched on the battlefield, even among his peers. And with the sole focus of creating a life for his family that was safe, that would see them no harm, he charged headlong into battle; day after day, night after night. Over the many years he spent at war, his humanity had become stretched thin, ready to snap at any time. He killed and killed and killed, just to protect them and their future.

But now he had nothing left.

He was living a fake life in another world, in a manor that he didn't earn and had no attachment to. With people that he desperately clung onto with hopes they wouldn't fade out from his life. They were all just handouts given to him by a goddess on a whim. Would Natsumi's guild be willing to accept someone like him; a fake, an imposter, who was so similar to yet so different than their beloved dragon princess. Would they accept a man so broken as himself, who had been shattered into a million pieces. Someone who has been trying desperately to piece himself back together, only to find that some of the pieces have vanished and it left a gaping hole in the centre.

Natsu came to a stop outside the Inn and his gaze slowly rose up to the second floor. He murmured softly and shook his head, choosing not to head inside and instead heading to the airport. With Natsumi's abilities and Lelyanna's ring, both should have no issue tracking him down. It was best that he stayed moving, stayed doing something. It didn't matter what that something was, as long as he was doing it. He needed to get his mind out of this rut.

The skies had begun to lighten, but it was still just as dreary. Dark clouds continued to hang low over the city are were obscuring the higher sections of it. Hopefully this didn't mean flights would be delayed or even cancelled. Thankfully, when he reached the airport and made the inquiry, he was informed that they're still running flights as they've got warning and guidance lights activated, which allows the pilots to navigate within safe margins. Though, his own classification of 'safe margins' was most likely extremely tighter than what was available in this world, so he'd just have to have faith that the trip back to Magnolia would be uneventful.

With their travel arrangements finalised, Natsu walked back through the city. People had begun to fill-out the pathways, either heading to work or some stores, none of it really mattered to him. He entered the Inn to find Lelyanna and Natsumi sat with the succubus sisters at the table by the window. The sisters weren't disguised and had their bags neatly lined up beside the table. Naturally, three extremely beautiful succubus attracted attention, and throwing in Lelyanna's gentle cuteness and Natsumi's raw sex appeal made the gaggle of girls a hell of a scene.

"I take it that you had no trouble with the owners?"

"They were very understanding. We were paid for our time and allowed to head out right away." Iris looked up from the group's conversation and gave the man a warm smile, though it began to falter the longer her attention stayed on him. "Is something wrong? You feel a little off, a little different than earlier."

"Just some unpleasant things that were flittering through my mind from my time before I migrated to Fiore." Natsu casually brushed the question aside and pulled out the bundle of tickets from one of his coat's inner pockets. "I went ahead and bought six tickets for the ten-o'clock flight to Magnolia. We just need to settle the account with the Inn Keeper and then we can leave."

"I've already sorted that out, Natsu." Natsumi gently informed the man, her large onyx green eyes staring into the murky abyss of Natsu's own darkened onyx eyes.

"I've also taken care of our luggage, we're ready to go whenever you want to."

Natsu looked at his two companions and the corners of his mouth twitched up. "Right. Let's get a move on and head out of this city." At his orders, his companions rose to their feet and were soon followed by the succubus sisters.

They were once more surrounded by darkness as they walked through Magnolia's streets. It was around 7-PM and they hadn't long gotten off the airship but they were finally nearing the Báleygr Manor. It couldn't come fast enough either as they had skipped having dinner on the ship and each member of the group were hungry. Sometimes when one stomach rumbled, it set of another, which led to a chain reaction every so often.

"It's just a little further up this hill." Natsu called out quietly to the three sisters trailing behind them. They had reached the corner of his property, the high wrought-iron fence looming over them as they walked alongside it.

"This is a pretty nice neighbourhood…" Iris murmured, earning vigorous nods from both of her sisters. "You actually live around here?"

Natsumi chuckled and looked back over her shoulder at the three women trailing behind. "We're actually just outside it. It's on the other side of this fence. But right now, the house itself is blocked from view by the tall hedges."

Natsu turned off the path and headed through the gate. He led the way down the winding flagstone path. When the house itself came into view, the doors opened and an ashen-haired woman stepped out to greet them.

"Welcome back, Master."

"Wow, she's cute."

"Thank you." Henrietta bowed to the youngest succubus, a light dusting of pink colouring her cheeks. "Shall I have the guests escorted to a room, Master?"

"Yeah, whether they take one or three is up to them." Natsu replied as he came to a stop within the entrance hall. The doors automatically closed behind the group and Henrietta took his coat, gently folding it over her arm. "Has anything happened while we were gone?"

"Natsumi had a visitor, but I told her that you three were currently out of the city on a job. I've collected the mail and placed it on the In-Tray in your office. Hm, we also finished the renovations you had outlined, but there was an unplanned change to the kitchen and dining room. The usual culprit, Master."

"I'll deal with the latter two in a moment." Natsu turned and gestured to the three dark-purpled-haired women with a wave of his hand. "These are Anabelle, Iris, and Cynthia Bardot, they're sisters who'll be staying here for a short time while we sort out their new lives here in Magnolia." He turned his head to the sisters and moved his hand toward the android. "This is Henrietta. She's the intelligence that runs the androids in the house. This particular body of hers is unique, there isn't any like her anywhere else in the world."

"Master provided me with this body and completely recreated my intelligence to be compatible with it. I am the biosynthetic android, Henrietta, I share my name with the manor's intelligence; my original form. Please address the mechanical units like you would myself." Henrietta placed her hand over her gently beating heart and gave the sisters a warm smile as a doll-like android came to a stop beside her. "As you can see, there are quite significant differences between my bodies. But appearances aside, the greatest difference is that I can operate independently from the manor's hub, so I'm not limited to the manor grounds."

"Woah." Anabelle, like her sisters, had to pick her jaw up from the floor as they eyed the two androids. "Ca-can I?" She asked, tentatively hold out a hand to the ashen-haired android.

"Of course. But please, don't get too handsy." Henrietta took a step closer and allowed the woman to feel her body. She was touched on the arms, stomach, neck, and face with gentle and inquisitive pokes and caresses.

"Wow, she feels like a real woman!" Anabelle's hands hovered over the android woman's breasts but she managed to stop herself before she got too curious. She turned to Natsu with wide iridescent purple eyes. "How accurate did you make her?"

"I didn't make her body, I found it in the ruins of my homeland – we were quite advanced, far more than Fiore is. As for the accuracy, well… she's completely anatomically correct for a human woman."

"Anyway, please allow me to show you to your rooms." Henrietta's mechanical body curtsied as she addressed the sisters in her songbird-like voice. The faint ticking within her body picked up and she turned and headed up the stairs.

"Once you've settled in, I'll bring up the boxes. If there's anything you need, just let any of Henrietta's bodies know, and she'll either relay it to me or attend to you herself." He was given a quick word of thanks from Iris and her sisters before they hurried up the stairs, chasing the mechanical android. Natsu turned to the two women accompanying him and gave them a small smile. "You two can go ahead and relax, go and unpack your stuff. I'll sort out some dinner."

"Did Lady Ceres do something to the kitchen?" A curious Lelyanna asked Henrietta, her head tilting slightly as she looked over towards the dining room.

"Yes. Unfortunately, I can't exactly stop someone like her from doing as she pleases… Though, she did help with finishing off the renovations."

"It's fine." Natsu waved away the issue and headed towards the dining room with Henrietta following close by. "As long as she hasn't painted it hot pink or something, I don't really mind. Though, after seeing her home in her realm, I doubt she has any idea what colours are." However, before he could enter the room, a pair of soft hands covered his eyes and a gentle giggle came from behind. "Henrietta?"

"Sorry, Master, but she told me I should do this for surprises." The android whispered playfully into her master's ear. The algorithms built into her body's organic firmware and her new sophisticated AI allowed her the freedom to learn and develop in ways that surprised even herself. He had told her that she was designed to infiltrate and assimilate into normal life but only now did she realise just how human-like she was becoming. Henrietta pressed herself against the man's amazingly warm back and gently guided him into the dining room. "It's a little bit different, but I hope you won't be mad at us for doing it."

Once Henrietta uncovered his eyes, she placed her hands on his shoulders and he felt her shift slightly to look over his right shoulder. While the contents of the dining room hadn't really been changed at all, the greatest offender however, was that the wall between the dining room and kitchen had been removed. A large kitchen bench made from ebony wood and topped with black marble had been placed on the border with stools on the dining room's side.

Natsu slowly made his way into the kitchen while Henrietta clung to his back, still curious to hear his thoughts.

Inside the kitchen, everything had been replaced with materials and appliances from his world. The countertops were all black marble. There was a professional grade oven with a grill and stovetop, a large fridge and freezer, even a dishwasher. A section had been made into a walk-in pantry which seemed to contain lots of goods from his world. He'd have to rummage through the cupboards to be certain, but it wouldn't have surprised him if she'd brought over anything he could think of when it came to kitchen appliances.

"I don't suppose she's shown you how to use any of these?"

"I've read the manuals while waiting for your return. But… if you could show me how to cook with these, I would be very grateful."

"Alright." Natsu slipped out of the woman's gentle grasp and turned to face her. "Just let me settle back in and deal with our guests' belongings and then I'll come down and whip something up for dinner."

"Can I watch?" Henrietta leaned in and clasped her hands as if she was begging the man, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.

"Sure. I also want you to have dinner with us from now on so you can taste my cooking for yourself. That should help you learn how to use your sense of taste to aid your cooking."

"Thank you, Master!" Henrietta cried out, gleefully. She smiled brightly, her eyes shimmering with happy tears. She bounced on the balls of her feet and looked around the new kitchen with overflowing excitement. "I haven't been allowed to cook at all until you returned, even though I knew about the work she did in here. We both agreed that you should be the first to cook in here, even though it's my job as your servant."

"I don't mind cooking. In fact, I find it fairly cathartic." Natsu patted the woman on the shoulder and left the kitchen. Like always, she stayed just slightly behind him. "If I'm not busy, I'm happy to share the load. I'll come down and help with cooking, and even teach you some recipes."

"I look forward to it. Oh, by the way, your guests have picked out their room. I queried them on why they only want one and it seemed they want to stay together since this is an unfamiliar environment. Would you like to deal with them now?"

"Yeah. I'll drop off their belongings and then deal with writing the report."

Even though she knew she didn't need to do it, Henrietta stepped past her master and led the way up both flights of stairs. She guided the man to the room that the succubus sisters had claimed, which happened to be two rooms down from his own but on the other side from Lelyanna's. "Here you go, Master."

Natsu kept the interaction with his guests brief, only checking in to see if they were settling in – they were making themselves at home and unpacking their travel bags – and letting them know that he'll work on dinner once he's finished writing the job report. With the pleasantries dealt with, he brought out the cardboard boxes containing their belongings and placed them in a neat cluster near the door. He left the women to their devices and headed down to the second floor and to his office. As he sat down at his desk, he took the mail from the In-Tray and read through it, though only one letter was worth any degree of interest; it was from Saiko, his weaponsmith.

Báleygr,

I called your manor but Henrietta told me that you were off on a job.
Since she said that she didn't know when you'd return home,
I decided to write this for you to read upon your return.

Firstly, I hope you gotten some use out of those weapons I forged for you,
you'll have to let me know how they faired – if you were able to use them.
I've made only a small number of weapons from the Báleygr Arms line,
so they retain their value as the best I have to offer – I'd rather not flood
the market.

But, I'm happy to report that I've received quite a bit of interest about them,
if it continues like this, then your name may become synonymous with high
quality weapons. If you have any plans to delve further into the weapons
business then let me know. I'm more than happy to continue our partnership.

Kind regards,

Saiko.

Natsu lowered the letter and with the flick of his wrist, he tossed it onto the centre of his desk. He shifted his gaze and looked out the window at the dark skies beyond. He raked his brain for a few minutes in silence, dwelling on whether to go forward with his munitions manufacturing plan and even expand it into weapons manufacturing. Specifically, the next evolution of weapons; self-cycling weapons ranging from self-loading rifles, machine guns, double-action/single-action revolvers, and even self-loading pistols. If his name was starting to be tied to high-quality weapons, he could also transition into technological advancements and it wouldn't be overly unusual providing they weren't unusually long leaps in advancement.

He slowly turned his seat and looked directly at his Head Maid, though, it was more at her body than her as a whole. "Henrietta, as someone who was made from technology far more advanced that this world can comprehend, in the manner of essentially being a synthetic human plus some extra parts, and having a sophisticated artificial intelligence that allows you to seamlessly blend in with other living beings while also allowing you the capacity to grow far beyond your original form. What do you think I should do…? Should I become an 'inventor' and 'create' all manner of things, or should I continue as I am?"

"In your past life, you were a soldier, yes? You fought tooth and nail to create a future for yourself and your family." Henrietta looked around the room, her head slowly turning, before she rested her gaze on the man's abyssal eyes. She took a step forward and turned, pushing herself up onto the desk and crossing her legs as she sat in front of her master. "Allow me to be frank; that life has ended for you. You failed to accomplish your dream, and you should leave it behind in that wasteland you used to call home."

"Harsh… but true, nonetheless." Natsu took a deep breath and slowly released it. "So?"

"So, I believe that you should forge a new life for yourself. Not follow along with someone else's predetermined path for you." Henrietta smiled warmly at the man and brought a hand to her heart. "You've given me the ability to just that, and over the short time since having this body, I've been thinking about what I want my life to be like. We both have the potential to be more than what we are now, a Jaeger and his Maid. We can be more than that, you contain that crystal that holds your world's collective knowledge, and I – as in me specifically – have been gifted the ability to exist outside of this house, to roam around the city and beyond. I have a body designed for combat and infiltration, I can blend in and I can fight whatever may come at me with a strength far greater than my appearance implies. I believe that we should both become more than what we are." The woman leaned in and rested her chin on her hands with her elbows planted on her knees, her silver-grey eyes shimmering faintly with emotion as she looked at her master. "To that end, I have an answer and a request for you. Yes, I do believe you should use your knowledge to better the country, in terms of weapons but also with other sectors."

"And what is your request?"

"I wish for my combat abilities to be tested, and if you deem them suitable, then I wish to become the third member of your team. I would like to see the world outside of this manor and be given the opportunity to fight alongside you, as was this body's original purpose; an answer to the declining numbers of Super Soldiers."

"Alright. But don't expect me to go easy on you. You have all the necessary combat data already programmed into that body, so you shouldn't have an issue fighting on par with me in terms of technique, and your weapons handling should be perfect."

"I know, Commander~." Henrietta sat up straight and gave the man a playful salute. "I wouldn't expect anything less than rigorous."

"I'll have to have Ceres deal with that dress you've got on." Natsu shifted his attention to the woman's black Lolita dress, her Head Maid's outfit. "It'd probably be a little strange to fight in, but if it's what you're comfortable with, then we can work with it. Maybe we could have her bless you with a little bit of magic… or I could see about creating a small module that self-repairs the clothing…"

"Master, if I may; I, myself, am product of your world, moulded by your hands into what I am now. I would greatly appreciate and accept anything you would create for me. So, if it was possible that you could create weapons and equipment that I could use, I would be more than happy to use them."

"Alright, I'll see what I can do. But in the meantime, I need to write up this report and give it to the Association then sort out the business for our guests. That should get me some passive income so I won't have to rely fully on hunting down rogues. From there, I need to work out where the Patent Office is and check the process for applying for patents. Then I can begin on creating designs and prototypes for the mechanisms my weapons use, as well as new chemical propellants and bullet designs based on what I use but without the high-density materials, hybrid material casings, and high-pressure propellant. It'll just be standard copper jacketed lead bullets with a single-piece nickel-plated brass casings, but it will still be leagues better than what is currently on the market."

"Will I be using your weapons?" Henrietta asked. She hopped off of the man's desk to allow him to work, taking her usual position just a little off and behind his right shoulder. "I'd be most familiar with things from our era, after all."

Natsu remained silent for close to two full minutes as he took out a piece of paper and began handwriting the report. After careful consideration, he tilted his head a little to the right as he addressed the android. "I think I'll let you use my Battle Rifle then. With your innate skills, you'll have no issue controlling it, unlike Lelyanna."

"Thank you, Master."

"So, you've finally begun to spread out your roots."

Natsu glanced at the pure-white woman sat next to him inside the gazebo. She had a small and gentle smile, seemingly happy at what he was doing. A few days had passed since they had returned to Magnolia and he had wanted Ceres' opinion on his plans. "I suppose it can be seen that way. What do you think of the plans?"

"I'll start with the R 'n' R house idea. I think it's a good fit for those three, makes good use of their race's abilities and culture, and if done correctly, it can also be fairly profitable." Ceres replied. She ran her eyes down the bundle of papers which contained the expanded and expansive plans for the Relaxation Hotel. "I happen to know that there is a reasonably large building near the busiest part of the city that can be easily converted for this business. It's not as big as the manor, but good enough for this business, plus includes room to grow. It's currently under foreclosure with an auction coming up soon."

"If you can give me the details, I'll check it out. Will I have enough for it?"

"Most certainly." Ceres smiled at the man. She neatly wrote the address for the property on the inside of the manilla folder that contained the documents, her strokes were very ornate and flowed beautifully but were perfectly legible. "Magnolia's branch of the Bank of Fiore will be holding the action. Maybe you could convince them into allowing you to purchase it outright."

"Alright, I'll check it out later and talk with the bank." Natsu took the folder from the deity and handed her the second one. "This contains plans to create and arms manufacturing business based on the Báleygr Arms name that I have on all my weapons, and which are on the weapons made by Saiko – the weaponsmith who made my swords – when using the information that I've supplied her."

"Hm, I see." Ceres slowly read through the documents in silence. She tapped the pen she was holding against her lips softly, her eyes quickly moving from left to right. After reading it a few times, she placed the folder down on the wooden table and turned her body to face the man. "I believe starting small scale is the best option. Low volume but high-quality weapons, just as that woman decided to do for the swords with your name on them. In fact, I don't believe you should mass produce these weapons. Instead, focus on making them the best that you can, and then prove that they are the best weapons on the market. I'm happy to bring over some machines and set them up inside one of the rooms below us so you can automate most of the process. But the biggest thing I want to say is this; don't stray too far from what this world knows."

"Alright. Well, I think I'll need an automated forge that's set up for extruding rods to be turned into barrels. I can get the billet for them from Saiko, that solves the material procurement issue. I'll need CNC machines too to make the parts. And I think I'll use wooden furnishings instead of recreating synthetic plastic, or I suppose I'd be inventing it…" Natsu threw up his hands and leaned back. "I'll make a list of things for you at a later date."

"While you might be able to get materials from her starting out, I suggest you consider starting up a foundry to produce stock yourself. It'll also provide you with an additional source of income from the sales of those materials. The only thing is, you'll need to wait until you have enough cashflow so you can buy a few lots in the industrial estate, build your buildings, and build connections to source your raw materials. Of course, this is all for a later date, you aren't anywhere near a position to do it right now."

"Alright, I'll think it over. We can talk more on that future path in, well, the future."

Ceres tilted her head slightly and looked into the man's eyes, staring directly into his soul. "Hm, I see that you've been struggling with a few things. If there's anything I can do to help, even if it's just answering a few questions, I'll do it."

"Don't worry about it, it's noth–" Natsu sighed through his nose. He knew he couldn't hide anything from the woman sitting next to him, so he decided to take her up on her offer. "Am I a bother to you? I ask so much of you, and you always go through with it. I can't help but think you're giving me handouts."

"I suppose it could seem like that, but let me tell you something; being an overseer… it's very boring work. I've had more fun in the very short time I've been helping you than I've had the rest of the time that I've worked as an overseer. I don't know, there's something about having a direct hand in this, having a relationship like ours that I find really enjoyable. The jobs you send me on feel like treasure hunts, diving through ruins in search of relics to bring back. So, don't feel like it's one-sided, Natsu. Just like how I'm helping you, you're helping me by giving me exciting things to do. If I complain, or give you a hard time about it, don't let it get to you, it's just a little bit of playful teasing." Ceres reached out to the man and brought the man's head to her chest. She began to run a hand through his long spiky salmon-pink hair while she gazed warmly at him with a gentle smile. "I feel that we might have had this conversation before. But even so, I believe it is definitely worth repeating. It's something I want you to remember, after all."

"I think you've been watching too many movies." Natsu joked quietly. He closed his eyes and a small smile spread across his lips as he allowed himself to stay within the goddess' comforting embrace. After indulging in her divine warmth for a few minutes, he slowly pulled back and let out a calm sigh as he turned back to the folders and gathered them up. "Well, I'll make you that list of things to gather. But first, I need to sort out those succubus sisters that I took in."

"Once you've got everything sorted out, then we can renovate the property to make it more suitable for the type of business it'll be handling. And once that's all done, I'll do a little bit of 'advertising' for you. Nothing major, just a little bit of a blessing that draws attention to the signage and piques their interest. Starting out, you'll get some people coming through the doors, which over time will organically grow into a decent consumer base."

"Thank you, Ceres." Natsu slowly rose from his seat and secured the folders with Requip. "If you'd like to say a little while in the manor, then you're free to. But Natsumi and Lelyanna are currently busy, it's only those three succubi here."

"I'll take you up on that offer when they've been sorted out. It's best that they don't realise who I am." Ceres replied before vanishing with a flash of light.

"Figured as much." Natsu gave the spot where she had been sitting a small amused snort and turned to the android who was dutifully standing nearby. "Henrietta, can you grab my coat from my office and meet me in the garage."

"Yes, Master." Henrietta bowed her head slightly and followed the man back across the footpath. She spared a glance over to the door, wondering whether to grab it herself or to have one of the mechanical units bring it to her. In the end, she quickly excused herself and parted ways with the man. She jogged over to the door; it still felt a little strange to move about in her body since it was just so bouncy. When she reached it, she was met with an older android who was carrying the coat. No words of thanks were needed between them as they shared a mind, so she took it and quickly returned to her master who was driving the car out from the garage. Henrietta approached the vehicle but before she could move to the driver's side, Natsu came to a stop and reached across the cabin to open the door for her.

"Hop in." Natsu waved over the android and straightened up.

Henrietta blinked at the man a few times before slowly lowering herself into the car and resting the coat between them. "You're taking me with you?"

"You did say that you wanted to see the world outside the manor. So, I decided to have you come with me while I handle business in the city. But just be aware, it'll probably be a bit boring." Natsu looked down at his coat then to the woman's outfit. "You should probably wear my coat, I'm sure you're cold."

"I am a little bit." Henrietta affirmed with a small nod. "But inside here, I've got the heat coming from you keeping me warm. I'll put it on when I need to step out of the car. Hm, aren't you concerned about people seeing those weapons?"

"I've been dwelling on that thought myself too." Natsu admitted as he drove out of his estate and headed down the road. "I'm thinking of refurnishing the weapons to have ebony wood panels, so they match my swords. So, at that point, unless someone looks closely then they wouldn't pick up on them. And they'd also blend in with the weapons I plan on producing under Báleygr Arms."

"Which would allow you to use your own weapons, right?"

"Exactly. The only issues with that are, one; the amount of force these guns and munitions produce when firing – pushing bullet that are much heavier than what this world uses, near or beyond the sound barrier… it could split the wood but I'm not certain. I could reinforce them with my Enhancement Curse as a precaution... It's something I want to completely avoid happening. And two; due to their designs, it might actually be impossible to do…"

"Providing that it's possible, that won't happen until Ceres provides the machines, correct?"

"It'll be easier for me to use a CNC machine to create replacement parts for the guns than if I hand-carved it all. Knowledge aside, I don't have the physical skills to do that. I can however, create CAD files and design parts to be machined by those machines."

"Wouldn't it be difficult to strip the weapons for maintenance if you redo all that?"

"Not if I simply switch the existing parts for identical wooden parts. As long as the process to disassemble the weapons stays the same, you and I should have no issues with our muscle memory."

"Master, it may just be easier to grin and bear it, so to speak. If you get asked about them, you just have to tell them that you have no intention of selling your personal weapons to others. And then just redirect them to the weapons you'll be manufacturing. You could use your weapons as an example of what you could manufacture if you chose to. I believe that would be better, advertising-wise."

"I'll… Maybe you're right. I might just be wasting my time and overthinking things. I'll probably do as you suggested and forget about it. Thank you, Henrietta."

Since she had no more questions, Henrietta shifted her attention from Natsu and looked out the window. She watched in awe as the buildings went past, and the flashes of faces waiting to cross the road or walking along the footpath. Every second she was in the car, was another second's worth of distance travelled away from the only place she had known. It only cemented her new freedoms in her mind. And she couldn't help donning a happy smile as she watched the world go by and grow by the second. When they finally came to a stop at the side of the road, she looked back over to Natsu and followed his gaze across the road to a building that had a foreclosed sign on the door.

"It doesn't look overly bad. Looks like the bank has already had it cleaned thoroughly in preparation for the auction." Natsu murmured. His fingers tapped a slow rhythm on the steering wheel as he narrowed his eyes at the windows. He couldn't see much through the thin blinds but it seemed to have been emptied already and there was no obvious damage. "I think we'll need to talk to the bank to see if they'll allow us to inspect the property. If I emphasise the fact that I'm willing to buy it outright for the buyout price, then they may allow us to take a look around. It would be easier if I could have some kind of phone that I could carry around… but that tech hasn't been invented yet…"

"There are Lacrima communicators, however they require magic to use so they haven't taken off outside of mages and magical beings and most people just use the landline telephones instead since they are everywhere."

"Maybe I'll look into one in time. But for now, let's go to the bank."

After struggling for a couple of hours with the bank as it had been surprisingly busy and apparently short-staffed, Natsu had finally been given the Okay to inspect the property. He knew it would've been a trial to organise the inspection, so he used the business plan he had created to persuade the bank's Foreclosed Property Manager to allow a viewing with the intent to purchase, though he did omit that he'd be employing succubi, for safety reasons.

"Master, I have a question." Henrietta murmured as they walked through the building. They had left the bank's representative by the door as they conducted their inspection. At Natsu's brief glance, she continued. "Forgive me if this is a little inappropriate, but it has to do with Natsumi's guests and your history."

"You're curious as to whether I'd openly strike up conversation with them?"

"Confrontation is unavoidable, curiosity will get the better of them eventually and they'll actively try and 'bump into you', so to speak."

"When it happens, I have no choice but to face it head-on." Natsu glanced over his shoulder at the ashen-haired maid. "As the master of the house, it would be inappropriate for me to give them the cold shoulder when I cross paths with them. Discomforting as it might be, there is no getting around it."

"I see. Well, I won't actively steer them away from you. Though, I'll still enforce the basement's restrictions." After a few minutes of silence, filled with the gentle clacking of their boots against the wooden floors, Henrietta spoke up once more. "Master, one more question."

"Go ahead."

"The machines you'll be having set up in one of the basement rooms, the ones that you'll be using to manufacture firearms, will you need the other units to operate them?"

"I plan on taking her advice to heart and not overproducing weapons. So, while I can deal with most of it myself while I'm home, if I want to maintain a constant level of production then I'll need just a small handful of units to take care of the process while I'm off on a job. I'll teach you the processes required to run it all once it's set up and I've sorted out the programming side of things."

"I should be able to just watch you do it and I'll pick it up pretty quickly."

"I expected as much." Natsu smiled to himself and let out a gentle sigh. "Let's save the chatter for when we're done here, I want to get those women sorted out as soon as possible before they become an even greater detriment to my sanity. Being in a near constant state of arousal is nowhere near as exciting as one would initially believe."

"Yes, I've unfortunately started to notice just how tight your pants have been looking these past few days… Is this because I'm becoming more like a human woman?"

"Most likely, it's only natural for it to happen, I guess. I don't think I programmed that into you, but I was pretty much in a trance just to be able to read from the crystal and code at the same time. The other possibility is that it's legacy code from that body itself, considering you're designed for infiltration and seduction is a tool you can use, so finding something arousing would be necessary. Or at least I believe so." Natsu decided to push the thought from his mind so he could focus on getting a handle on the building. It seemed mostly suitable for his needs.

The first floor had two large rooms, three smaller ones and a small kitchen; one of the large rooms could be used as a store mixed with reception, while the second room could be turned into a public lounge, and the three smaller rooms could be turned into private meeting rooms. Moving to the second floor; it had a six equally sized rooms which could be converted to one or two massage rooms with the rest containing beds for rest and 'stress relief'. Both floors contained separated bathrooms and lavatories, which would be useful for guest to use to freshen up. The third floor would unfortunately need some work as it only had a lavatory and basic rooms with no kitchen in sight. He would need to open it up a little to create a living room, install a proper kitchen and bathroom, a small laundry room, and individual rooms for the three women to sleep in. Not quite a herculean task but it definitely would take a little bit more time, he'd have to suffer living with three extremely attractive and sexually charged women with nothing to occupy themselves with except for the sole man living in the manor.

Natsu let out a weary sigh and turned to the android who had stuck close to him in silence throughout their explorations. "Well, it'll need a little bit of a touch-up but I believe it's more than suitable. Let's go and talk to the bloke again."

"Yes, Master."

Natsu led the way back down to the first floor where a man was waiting for them by the front door. "Hey, Ryker, I've made my decision."

The blonde man raised his reddish-brown eyes from the folded newspaper in his hands to the pinkette as he descended down the stairs. "And what do you think?"

"I believe it's suitable for my plans, though I will have to do some minor renovations to get it exactly how I want it." Natsu came to a stop in front of the man and slipped his hands into his pants pockets. "I'm more than happy to take it off the bank's hands."

"Alright then." Ryker slipped the newspaper under his left arm and opened the door for the man and his maid. "Let's dip back to my office and we can get the paperwork sorted. You have just saved me the hassle of going through the usual longwinded process to get a building advertised, auctioned, and sold." Ryker followed the pair out of the building and locked it up behind him.

That's this chapter's rewrite completed. It came to an increase of 250 words but it was all minor changes.

I have this list on my profile, but in the event that it hasn't been seen, here's the slimmed down version of the firearms.
- M12 Pistol – 10x28mm – based on the HK USP Tactical and HK45 Tactical.
- M7 Battle Rifle – 8.6x66mm – based on the Keltec RDB Defender with the RFB barrels and has two variants, an 18-inch (barrel) Carbine and 24-inch (barrel) full-length rifle.
- M18 Shotgun – 10 gauge – based on the Radikal Arms NK-1.
- MG80 – 8.6x66mm – based on the Rheinmetall MG3.
- MGL40 – 40mm Smart Grenades – based on the Milkor MGL.
- SR32 – 10.4x83mm – based on the DSR-Precision DSR-1 (but semi-auto).
- SPSR-14.5 – 14.5x120mm – based on the DSR-Precision DSR-50 (but semi-auto).
- MP10 – 10x28mm – based on the HK MP7A2.

The weapons he will be producing are as follows, this gets expanded on in later chapters:
- Self-Loading Rifle Mark 1 (SLR-MK1) - 8.6x66mm - based on the FN FAL 50.62 metric pattern but with no folding stock and it has ebony wood furniture. Has an 18-inch barrel, an integrated picatinny style mounting rail on top for optical sights. Feeds from 20-round mags.
- Báleygr Arms Pistol 10mm (P10) - 10x28mm - based on the SIG P210 Target model with ebony wood grip. Feeds from a 14-round mag.

Hope you liked the chapter, see you next time.